Hell Raiser - 2016
Surrey Mirror, Thursday 7th February, 2002
It’s glam rock time
Most men would quail at the idea of dressing up in long-haired wigs and sparkly boots – but not the members of glam-rock tribute band Sweet FA. They make a habit of transforming themselves into wild rock stars at least once a week and will be donning their full regalia for a concert at the Coach House, Dormansland, on Friday February 15.
What is more, they are encouraging anyone who goes along to the gig to get into the spirit of the occasion by dressing up as well.
”There’ll be plenty of glitter, lots of make-up and some very big wigs,” says the band’s bass player, Jim Houghton, who lives in Caterham. ”It’ll be one big party from start to finish and there’ll even be a couple of prizes for the best-dressed people there.”
Although there is a great focus on having fun during the performance, the band always make sure that the music is spot on. During their show. they pay tribute to the likes of Slade, The Sweet, Alice Cooper and T-Rex, to name but a few.
”An awful lot of work has gone into it,” admits Jim, ”But we don’t take anything too seriously. We go out to have a good time.”
Jim is a full-time musician by profession and as well as playing in a couple of other 70s-style bands, he is also in the process of writing an album with former Mott The Hoople guitarist Luther Grosvenor.
The other members of the band, however, all do relatively ’normal’ jobs by day – one is a fireman, another is a website designer and there’s also a plumber. But by night, they are transformed into glamorous rock stars, squeezing into their drainpipes, slapping on the make-up and tottering around on high-heeled boots.
So just how many hours does it take for them all to get ready for a show?
"Oh, we’ve got it down to a fine art now,” smiles Jim. ”It takes us about 45 minutes to set up but only about half-an-hour to get ready.”